Family Ties
by midnitebeauty101
Summary: Rachel Curtis has finally found someone who can make her happy again. When he betrays her and she is forbiddan to see him, what will she do? Dally and Johnny are still alive.
1. Chapter 1

"Where do you think you're going, young lady?" Sodapop Curtis asked me.

"Out," I replied defiantly, arms folded across my chest.

"Not like that you're not!" Soda cried, indicating my outfit, which consisted of tight jeans and a low-cut belly shirt. Being my older brother, he could get very protective. Actually, so could Ponyboy, who was a year younger then me. As for Darry, my eldest brother…well, he was very strict with all of us. I ignored him and headed for the front door.

Darry, who had witnessed everything from the kitchen, finally spoke up. "Rachel Lee Curtis!" he scolded. "Ever since mom and dad died, you've bee walking around here thinking you can do whatever the hell you want, and I'm sick of it!"

"Darry!" Soda yelled before he could say anymore. I froze, my eyes locked with Darry's. Ever since the accident that had claimed our parents' lives, nobody spoke of them around me. I knew what the doctor had told my brothers-that I wasn't ready to accept the fact that they were gone, and the best thing to do would be not to talk about it in front of me. He assured them that this was completely normal. Thus, everyone, myself included, was shocked by Darry's outburst., and all eyes fell on me.

"Screw you," I snapped in a malicious tone before storming out the door. I took a walk to the park where I sat atop the jungle gym and lit up a cigarette.

"You ain't supposed to be smoking," a voice called out. A figure emerged from the shadows, which I immediately recognized as Pony's.

"Sue me," I replied sharply, my blonde hair blowing in the wind.

"C'mon," my brother coaxed. "Let's just go home."

I shook my head. "Naw…you go on ahead. I need some time alone to cool down. I'll be home soon."

"Fine," Ponyboy sighed, knowing that it was useless to argue with me. I was more stubborn then any of my brothers, and they knew to pick and choose their battles. "Be careful," he added before reluctantly walking back to the house.

"I will," I called to his retreating form.

A few minutes after Pony left, a red convertible came to a stop right in front of me. I tensed up visibly, wondering what the Soc's were doing here at this time of night. The window rolled down, revealing none other than Dallas Winston, and I relaxed once again. "Curtis, get your ass in here," he called to me. I jumped into the passenger seat, not asking where the car had come from. From what I had heard, Dally had stole it last night, and gave Pony boy a ride to school today. "Darry'll skin ya if he finds out you smoke," Dally informed me, indicating the cigarette that I was still holding.

"Yeah, well, Darry has got a stick up his ass," I commented.

"Amen to that."


	2. Chapter 2

It was around midnight when I finally stumbled up the stairs to my house. I'd spent the past three hours with Dally at Buck's party. Needless to say, I'd had more than a few drinks.

"Where were you?" Darry demanded the minute I set foot in the house. Shrugging, I staggered over to the couch to sit.

"Are you drunk?" Soda questioned me.

"Me? Drunk? Never!" I slurred, accompanying my answer with a small giggle.

"Out-fucking-standing!" Darry cried, throwing his hands up in the air.

"Hey, what was Dally's car doing here?" Ponyboy asked as he emerged from his room.

"You were with Dallas Winston until midnight: Soda yelled incredulously. Soda wasn't one to yell, so when he did you knew it was serious.

"What did I tell you about hanging out with Dally?" Darry demanded. I gave a drunken half shrug before cracking up. I couldn't help it - Darry looked so funny standing there with his arms crossed and his forehead creased. He looked like a grumpy fifty year old man. "Forget it!" he cried, getting more frustrated with my by the moment. "GO to bed and we'll talk about this is the morning when you're sober."

"Fine with me!" I yelled back as I half-stormed, half-stumbled into my room to go to sleep.

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I awoke the next morning to a blend of loud voices coming from the living room. I groaned and, holding my head, ventured out of her room. "Can you hoodlums _please_ keep it to a dull roar?"

"You go a headache?" Steve asked, not really waiting for an answer as he turned his attention back to Mickey Mouse which happened to be on our TV once again.

Darry spoke for me. "Yeah. It's called a hangover." He turned to face me. "Sucks, huh?"

"Where the hell did you go last night?" questioned Two-Bit. Apparently the news that I had gotten drunk took his attention away from the TV. I'm assuming he found Darry beating the crap out of me, more amusing than Mickey Mouse.

I sighed. "Me and Dal went to Buck's. It's really no big deal."

"No big deal?" Darry echoed, repeating the phrase as if I'd told him that committing murder was no big deal.

"That's what I said. Did I stutter?"

"Well, you're wrong. It is a big deal. It's a huge deal!"

"C'mon," I argued. "You never get this pissed off when Soda drinks!"

"Yeah, well, he's older," Darry reasoned. "And besides, he's not out with Dally Winston until all hours of the night!" He sighed, clearly frustrated. "Look, I've got to take all these guys to work. We'll talk about this when I come home tonight. Two-Bit, you gotta drive Pony and Johnny to the movies. I don't have time. And stop for some food first." He handed Two-Bit some money. "Here, it's on me. Rach, are you going to be okay on your own?"

"Darry, I'm almost sixteen. I'll be fine."

The gang said their goodbyes and pretty soon all that was left of Two-Bits car was a trail of dust. I decided to go back to bed, hoping to sleep off my hangover.


	3. Chapter 3

It was around three in the afternoon when I woke up for a second time. My head still hurt, but it no longer felt like a jackhammer was pounding into my skull. I took that as a good sign.

Climbing out of bed, I walked to the bathroom. I winced as the bathroom light pierced through my eyes which were still only half-open. Turning the hot water on in the shower, I stripped down and stepped in, letting the warm water cascade down my back. Twenty minutes later, the hot water had run out, signaling the end of my shower. I emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around me.

A whistle came from the living room and someone laughed when I jumped about six feet in the air. I felt a faint blush creep up my cheeks when I found the intruder to be a nineteen year old boy named Dally that, just a few hours ago, she'd been forbidden to see. I felt Dally look me up and down a few times before letting out another whistle. "Wow," he said, finally locking eyes with me. With raised eyebrows, he crossed the living room and walked towards me, stopping when there was less than an inch of space between us.

My breath caught as I looked into Dally's eyes. I knew from experience that it was pointless to attempt to look away; my body wouldn't let me. Slowly, Dally leaned in and closed the gap between us, capturing my lips in a deep, passionate kiss. Unfortunately, the kiss was cut short, as Darry chose the precious moment to arrive home from work. "What the hell is going on?" he roared.

"Nothing Dar," Dally replied in a much calmer voice.

"Obviously something! I come home and find you two kissing and my little sister naked." I looked down and let a curse escape my lips. I'd forgotten that I wasn't dressed yet. After holding up a finger, indicating I'd be back in a moment, I went into my room to get dressed. When I returned to the living room, Darry was on the couch, not looking at either of us, and Dally was leaning up against a table. He made a movement to catch my eye and showed me that he had a note for me, which he left on the table. With a quick nod, he escaped the house before the eldest Curtis brother had the opportunity to skin him.

Subtly, I walked past the table and snatched up the note. Continuing on into the kitchen, I got myself a drink and read the letter that Dally had left me. It read:

Rach-

Meet me at the park tonight around midnight.

-Dal

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A/N: Thank you for reviewing guys! I'm sorry that these chapters are so short, but I have the story written out already, I'm just dividing the chapters up. I didn't realize how short they were. But I promise to update within the next 48 hours.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hey guys! I'm SO sorry that I haven't updated this story in forever. I'm also sorry about how short this chapter is. Some stuff happened and I haven't been able to get on here for the longest time. I'm sorry again¼hopefully you enjoy this chapter, and I'll try to update again really soon!

I waited until around 11:45 that night to sneak out, even though it meant I'd be late meeting Dally. I had to-I couldn't even imagine what would happen if I'd gotten caught sneaking out¼.again. It was about 12:15 when I finally arrived at the park, holding onto the jungle gym to catch my breath.

"You alright there?" Dally asked me, seemingly amused by my lack of oxygen.

"Screw you," I managed to get out between gasps.

"Gladly," came Dally's swift reply.

I shoved him backwards a bit as I straightened up and looked him in the eyes. "What did you want?"

Dally sighed and, after a moment, proceeded to shrug. "Sorry I got you into trouble with Darry."

I raised an eyebrow. "You brought me all the way over here to tell me that?"

He shook his head. "No¼I wanted to do this also," his reply was followed quickly by a passionate kiss.

After a few moments we broke away and I grinned. "That was defiantly worth it."

A moment later a car drove by, pulling up right in front of us. It was Sylvia-Dally's old girlfriend. Rumor had it that the two of them still hooked up, but I wasn't one to believe heresay. "I'll uh¼I'll see you later Rachel," Dally said as he climbed into the car. The two of them rose off, leaving me behind in a cloud of dust.

I cursed myself for being so stupid. How could I actually believe that Dallas Winston was interested in me? I was just another girl on his list-one more chick he could use. I was so busy being mad at myself for trusting Dally that I didn't hear the footsteps coming up behind me until it was too late. Turning around slowly, I tried to keep my cool as I found myself face-to-face with an unknown Soc. I knew that I was in trouble the moment I saw his sadistic smirk. Actually, that was the last thing that I remember seeing before banging my head on the concrete ground and going to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

I opened my eyes slowly, my head pounding. As I came to, a voice called out, "Sodapop! She's awake!" I winced, his words piercing right through me.

"Steve, shut up," Darry hissed as he came to my bedside. "Hey kid, how ya feeling?"

"What happened?" I asked, my voice no louder than a whisper.

"Looks like somebody knocked you out. Lucky for us, Two-Bit was on his way home from a party. He found you and brought you home." He paused for a moment and then asked the question that I was dreading. "What the hell were you doing out at one in the morning?"

"I went out….to meet someone," I replied, being as nonspecific as possible.

"Who?" he demanded, obviously not in the mood to be playing games.

"Dally," I answered, my voice once again lowering to a whisper. His eyes narrowed, and he looked at me, clearly waiting for me to elaborate. I told him the entire story. "Then he left with Sylvia," I finished my explanation.

Dally was getting visibly madder by the second. I knew what he was thinking – if Dallas hadn't left me by myself in the middle of the night near Soc territory, I wouldn't have gotten hurt. "You're not allowed to see Dallas anymore," he instructed, his voice low and venomous.

I nodded. "No argument here."

A/N: Sorry this chapter is so short. I got banned from my computer at home so I'm updating at school and the period is almost over.


	6. Chapter 6

Rachel slept the rest of the day, her body attempting to heal itself. Granted, she had been knocked unconscious, but luckily Two-Bit had found her before anything serious happened. She woke up around eight that night, noticing that it was deadly quiet out in the living room. Confused, she ventured out of her room.

As soon as I reached the living room, I understood the eerie silence. Standing in the doorway was Dallas Winston. Scanning the rest of the room I saw my brothers and Two-Bit, frozen in their places. I knew that they were all surprised that Dally would be stupid enough to come over after last night. I looked up and locked eyes with him.

"Rachel," he finally said, taking a step inside the house.

"Go to hell Dally," I replied in a menacing voice. Turning around angrily I stormed back to my room.

Back in the living room, Sodapop stood up and walked over to Dally. "Stay the fuck away from my sister," he warned, fists clenched.

"Look, I heard what happened, alright?" Dally told them, sighing heavily. "Is she alright?"

"Yea, no thanks to you."

"Soda, this wasn't my fault!"

Soda studied him for a moment, wondering if he was serious or not. "No? If you hadn't told her to sneak out, then left her alone at the park so that you could go sleep with Sylvia, none of this would've happened!"

"I…," Dally trailed off, unable to defend his actions. The impact of what he had caused finally hit him. "I'm sorry," he apologized sincerely. "Now can I just talk to her?"

"No way," Soda replied. That said, he pushed Dally out the door and slammed it in his face.

And that was that.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Wow….I got the biggest urge to update this story just now. It's 3:10 in the morning, but what the hell…lol. I haven't updated since May? Wow….sorry guys, I feel really bad. I wonder if there's anyone here who still actually reads this and hasn't given up on me..hmm..lol, I have another story I want to work on, so this is going to be the last chapter…sorry if the ending sucks, I just felt this was more realistic

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After about a week of rest, Darry decided that I was well enough to go back to school, despite my protests. Not much had occurred in the past seven days. I hadn't heard from Dally, which I thanked God for. Sure I was angry at him, but I was afraid that if he came to see me, my resolve would melt away and I would forgive him. Oh hell, I knew that was what would happen. By the time I dragged myself out of bed and got ready for school, I was about a half hour late. Ponyboy had left without me and Darry was on his way to work.

"I really don't like you walking to school by yourself," he sighed.

"Darry, it's the middle of the day. The school is in our territory, and I've walked by myself dozens of times," I pointed out. "I will be fine. I promise."

"Well, alright. Come straight home after school."

After giving me those orders, he left for work and I headed in the other direction for school. I had made it about halfway there when I noticed a car that was driving a little bit too slow. It pulled up on the side of me and I took out the blade that I had swiped from Soda earlier today. The driver's side door opened and I frowned. "What are you going to do, stab me to death?" Dally chuckled. "Put the blade away before you hurt yourself."

"What the hell do you want Dallas?" I demanded. He came over and picked me up. He threw me over his shoulder and carried me to Buck's place. Luckily, we were only a block away from there. I thought about pointing out that leaving his car on the street was a dumb idea. After all, anyone could come by and hot-wire it. Then I realized that was probably how he got the car in the first place.

When we finally got to Buck's, he put me down on the couch. "We need to talk."

"Are you still sleeping with Sylvia?" I asked him.

"Yes."

"Then no, we don't need to talk."

Dally grabbed my wrist as I tried to get up. "But that doesn't mean that I don't like you too."

"No Dally," I gave a sarcastic laugh, "it just means that you don't respect me."

"Rach…" he trailed off, looking for the right words. "I'm not the kind of guy who does relationships. I've never been with only one girl before."

"I know," I cut him off. "And that's why it was a stupid idea to even consider getting involved with you. I don't need my heart broken Dal. And we both know that's what going to happen."

"So, what? You're not even going to give me the chance?" he questioned.

"I can't afford to. My heart can't afford to. I'm sorry." With that said, I took one last look at Dally and then walked out the door. I refused to let myself look back. As I turned the corner I realized that I hadn't just walked out on Dally, I had walked away from him. There was no going back now. He would just be another missed opportunity. One more instance where I thought I would be better off playing it safe. I had a pretty strong feeling that I was going to regret this later on. But I continued walking; not just out of Buck's house, but out of Dally's heart forever. 


End file.
